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Rule Details

Rule Number:

13P035

Title:

Education Quality Standards

Type:

Standard

Status:

Adopted

Agency:

Board of Education

Legal Authority:

16 V.S.A. §§ 164(7) and 165(a)

Summary:

State Board Rule 2000, currently titled School Quality Standards, has been significantly revised and is referred to as Education Quality Standards in the proposed changes to the rules.
Originally created under Act 60 of 1997, the directive exists under 16 V.S.A. § 165 for all schools to meet the standards "to carry out Vermont's policy that all Vermont children will be afforded educational opportunities which are substantially equal in quality."
The existing and proposed rules encompass school requirements for staffing, graduation requirements, assessment systems, curriculum, facilities and the learning environment, and student support services within schools.
The proposed Education Quality Standards incorporate requirements under Act 77 of 2013, creating a Flexible Pathways Initiative withing the Agency to expand Opportunities for secondary students to complete high school and achieve post-secondary readiness, including the requirement for all schools to develop Personal Learning Plans for each student.

Persons Affected:

Individuals affected include the Vermont State Board of Education, Agency of Education, Vermont public school districts and students, Vermont public school principals and other administrators, educators in Vermont public schools and some independent schools with publicly funded students.

Economic Impact:

Act 77 of 2013 does have financial implications. The dual enrollment portion of this legislation, which is reflected in the Education Quality Standards, includes a $400,000 appropriation from Next Generation Funds fro the first two years, and then relies upon local school budgets starting in FY2017.
Act 77 expands early college for high school seniors. The existing funding structure for this opportunity is an appropriation of 87 percent of the base education amount per participating student (capped at 18) from the Education Fund.
The financial obligations included in the proposed rules are not different from the current requirements. Schools are expected to carry out these responsibilities under existing funding, and may in fact find efficiencies related to virtual learning, shared classrooms, and out of school internships for students.
These additional expenditures are expected to produce net savings that are harder to quantify, through greater job readiness and less post-secondary remediation.